The thought of death stirred an uncomfortable sensation within Iskander. He had never really been driven by a strong will to survive since life and death weren’t things he’d given much thought to before. But now, one thing was clear—dying wasn’t an option. His desire to live wasn’t weak, even if it wasn’t consciously strong. That being said, Iskander winced. What should I do after this?
Too many uncertainties crowded his mind.
What would happen after he killed this monster? The human-like shadows he’d seen in the ruins could easily turn into creatures like the one he faced now. How would he handle them if they attacked en masse? Where exactly was he? Could he even escape this city? And if so, how?
These thoughts flickered through his mind in rapid succession, only to fade just as quickly. Iskander exhaled, loosening his body’s tension but keeping his focus on the Husk. I guess I need to deal with this thing first.
It might not be as difficult or drawn out as he feared, provided he could keep his mind calm.
Roar!
Despite its vaguely humanoid shape, the Husk let out a roar. It wasn’t loud; in fact, Iskander doubted it could even be heard beyond this room. The creature’s voice was hoarse, more like a harsh rasp than a true roar.
He noticed the monster’s body still trembled, though its movements seemed less tense than before. Great, the effect is still there.
Iskander immediately took a step forward.
In response, the Husk lunged at him, moving faster than it had earlier.
Iskander’s reaction speed matched the creature’s.
Comparing the monster’s increased speed to the reflexes of his former human body—if he were still a normal Earthling standing five meters away from it, he would have been killed instantly. Before the Husk’s speed increase, the Earthling Iskaner could have just barely dodged.
As Aiura, Iskander found himself able to evade the attacks with relative ease, thanks to the Husk’s lack of intelligence. Not now though.
Dodging its strike, Iskander countered by slashing at the creature’s limbs with the Kris of Bloodhound. His strategy was simple as it could be; it was to wear the monster down over time. The kris would ensure the creature bled out eventually. The only real danger was its sudden bursts of speed.
The Husk whirled to strike again, but Iskander sidestepped and circled around it, avoiding its line of sight. He moved in quickly to land another slash before retreating.
“—urk!”
Then, his footing slipped.
He wasn’t able to land the follow-up strike, "Whoa?!" and barely managed to dodge the monster’s counterattack.
His heart felt like it had momentarily stopped.
Despite the sudden slip-up, Iskander quickly regain his composure. Confusion settled in his mind. What was that feeling just now?
Just before Iskander wanted to follow up an attack to the Husk earlier, a sharp and chilling sensation jolted through his body. The source—
His attention was immediately drawn to the door, his brow furrowing slightly. As he focused intently on the area, the sharp sensation remained intense. It was as if daring him to look at it. More importantly, he sensed a familiar feeling to it.
What is it, what is it...? he tried to recall while keeping the Husk in check at the same time.
When Iskander soon realized, his expression frozen. Isn't it just like when the Husk emerged from the shadows?
—sure enough, figures began to materialize from the darkness into the faint light of the room.
Iskander let out a "Huh?" right after catch a glimpse of what appeared from the shadows.
Two figures, emerging from the shadows— were humans.
Or at least, they seemed very human. Their forms were obscured by full black armor, heavy and imposing, though their body proportions gave away their humanity. He couldn’t make out their faces, but their shapes were unmistakable.
One was clearly a man, and the other, by her shorter stature and more defined curves, appeared to be a woman. They both wielded thick, long swords with both hands.
Definitely not normal, he thought.
Despite their human-like appearance, there was clearly something odd about them. A strange aura radiated from the two, causing Iskander’s skin to crawl. His expression twisted in discomfort. What are they?
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A hologram flashed before his eyes.
[Name: Knight of Orze
Type: Hollow Entity
Rank: Unique]
[Abilities:
- Assist of Shadow: Reduces the chance of being hit by attacks by 30% (different effects depending on targets).
- Void Attacks: Attacks with void energy that can penetrate armor and shields, striking directly at the soul, dealing maximum 10% per hit.
- Dark Restoration: Restores 5% Hearth every 10 seconds when in shadow.]
[Weaknesses:
- Light Vulnerability: Light-based attacks increase damage by 50%.]
Iskander’s eyes scrutinized the two armored figures. The dim light glinted off their black metal armor, which looked cool and also heavy, seemed to be impenetrable by normal means.
He scanned for any weak points, but the armor offered nothing. It's just solid, unyielding surfaces that would likely deflect ordinary strikes.
Yeah, running away might be the better option here.
Their movements were methodical. They clearly had fought together before.
The taller man took position at the front, while the smaller, yet equally scary woman moved to the side, ready to flank.
Iskander forced a wry smile.
“Mind telling me your intentions?”
He said it more to calm himself with his odd humor than anything else. It would also be beneficial if they could communicate.
He shot a quick glance at the Husk, noticing it behaving strangely. ‘Why is it staying still?’
The Husk’s focus was locked on the two Knights. As Iskander was about to shift his attention back to the armored figures—
Boom!
The male Knight and the Husk collided with a powerful impact. Iskander barely had time to process what was happening before the female Knight rushed toward him. Instinctively, he raised his dagger to block her incoming strike.
“Ah?”
A confused sound escaped his lips. The female Knight suddenly halted mid-strike, her attention turning toward the same direction as his.
Iskander's expression darkened. Again...?
From the direction of the door, more figures emerged from the shadows.
Three more materialized. Those damn Husks! he thought indignantly.
Unlike the Husk he had been battling moments earlier, these new ones had more human-like features. For one, they didn’t crawl on all fours. Even so, their monstrous appearance remained. Each had lifeless, decaying skin and vacant, hollow eyes.
Soulless, Iskander suddenly had that thought.
After all, they were the perfect embodiment of the word. Maybe that was what "Husk" truly meant.
One of them had grotesquely oversized arms, capable of flattening him in a single blow. Another had an enormous, swollen head, its mouth gaping wide enough to swallow a human head whole.
The last Husk had a skeletal, female form, all nourishment seemingly drained from her body. Unlike the others, she didn’t have exaggerated proportions, but her long, sharp claws seemed sturdy and dangerous. The others moved clumsily, hindered by their twisted forms, but the female Husk moved with far more fluidity.
Iskander glanced at the ongoing battle between the male Knight and the first Husk.
Only a second or two had passed since the Knights arrived, but in that short time, the male Knight had already severed one of the Husk’s long arms. As Iskander watched, the Knight skillfully maneuvered his longsword and slashed through the Husk’s neck, ending it with pretty much no sound. That’s just terrifying.
Iskander grimaced.
Without hesitation, the female Knight charged toward the trio of Husks.
Seizing the opportunity, Iskander tried to make his way toward the exit.
"Tch," he clicked his tongue, stopping short. The female Husk blocked his path.
She moved faster than the enraged, four-legged Husk from earlier, her skeletal frame darting toward him with speed that belied her frail appearance.
Iskander raised his kris, bracing for her attack. A sharp, scraping sound rang out as her claws struck, followed by the hot sting of a cut on his cheek. Ignoring the pain, he swept his right leg low and hard.
It struck something immediately, sending the Husk tumbling to the ground.
Yeah, get down forever.
She could’ve used her long arms to keep him at a distance, making it easier for Iskander to evade her wild strikes, but she didn’t. She lacks intelligence.
Before she hit the ground, Iskander seized her right wrist with his left hand. In one swift motion, he drove the kris into the underside of her wrist joint.
"Gyahrkkhh...!"
The sound of cracking bones echoed through the room.
The Husk lashed out with her other hand, but Iskander planted his left foot on it, pinning it against her chest. The creature howled in agony as he held her down.
Still gripping the Husk’s wrist with his left hand, Iskander lowered his stance, shifting his weight. With a backhand grip on his kris, he stabbed repeatedly at the creature’s neck.
With each strike, the Husk jerked, growing visibly weaker, but Iskander continued until the monster was completely incapacitated.
“Ugh,” he shuddered, disgusted by the act of stabbing it.
He shook his head, forcing the unsettling thoughts away. The Husk was dead—finally. After taking a moment to confirm that the creature wouldn’t move again, his gaze drifted toward the two Knights. They were nearly finished dispatching the remaining Husks.
Yeah, I should get out of here.
Iskander knew better than to test his luck against the Knights. Their soul-attacking abilities sounded far too dangerous, and he had no desire to find out just how dangerous they were.
Before heading to the exit, he cast one last glance at the fallen Husk. Just now, I felt something intensify near my heart. What was that…?
A hologram materialized in front of him.
[When someone kills a soul-bearing creature, the soul of the slain is transferred to the killer. Some souls can be absorbed, while others cannot. Non-absorbable souls materialize within the corpse, available for other uses. However, absorbable souls can be dangerous—especially when the soul value of the slain far exceeds that of the killer, which can lead to severe complications or even instant death]
Iskander regarded the message with a mix of curiosity and doubts. After a moment, he shook his head and sprinted toward the exit, leaving the battle behind.